In the first decade the 20th century the Cardiff Board of Guardians realised that the existing accommodation for the sick at the City Lodge was inadequate and waiting lists for admission there had been in excess of 2000 patients at any one time.

[1] The First World War and the death of the original architect intended for the project caused significant delays in its planning, but progress had been made by the mid-1920s after a public enquiry for the provision of the hospital.

[1] Construction of the hospital began in 1928, with Mary, Princess Royal and Countess of Harewood laying the foundation stone, and was completed in 1933.

This had the benefit of the wards being away from the noise of the kitchens and boiler houses, while also allowing for easy expansion of the hospital in subsequent decades.

[2] The hospital joined the National Health Service in 1948[3] and expanded significantly in the subsequent decades, with more wards being built in several phases of construction.